Power control device and a control method

ABSTRACT

A power control device comprises the following elements. An input assembly has a switch and is electrically connected to a first actuator, and generates a trigger signal according to a state of the switch or a control signal inputted from the first actuator. A calculating assembly is electrically connected to the input assembly and outputs a first signal from a control output terminal and a second signal from a feedback output terminal when the calculating assembly receives the trigger signal. An output assembly is electrically connected to the control output terminal of the calculating assembly for receiving the first signal and changes a power-on/off state of a controlled device when a voltage level of the first signal changes. A feedback assembly is electrically connected to the feedback output terminal of the calculating assembly and outputs a feedback signal to the first actuator according to the second signal.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) on Patent Application No(s). 201910239584.0 filed in China on Mar. 27, 2019, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field

The disclosure relates to a power control device and a control method, and more particularly to a power control device and a control method based on hardware.

2. Related Art

As the advent of the era of “big data”, a server has the advantages of powerful computing ability and large storage memory, and the server is able to provide service through the internet. For these reasons, more and more industries depend on the server on dealing with large amounts of data. Generally, power control (power on/off) of the server is implemented by a baseboard management controller (BMC) and software.

However, software is more likely to fail without warning than hardware, and the cost of developing and maintaining the software is also higher than the hardware. On the other hand, since the structure of the server which the power control device is based on the BMC is limited by the BMC, and data transmitting path are often set as a single direction between different elements rather than a circuit. For these reasons, the power control device based on the BMC and the software often lacks a mechanism for a user to confirm whether the device is power on or power off, so the user is unable find out the problems immediately when the device does not work.

As a result, it still needs a power control device and a control method in order to overcome the aforementioned problems.

SUMMARY

According to one or more embodiments of this disclosure, a power control device comprises the following elements. An input assembly having a switch, wherein the input assembly is adapted to be electrically connected to a first actuator, and the input assembly generates a trigger signal according to a state of the switch or a control signal inputted from the first actuator. A calculating assembly is electrically connected to the input assembly for receiving the triggered signal, wherein the calculating assembly outputs a first signal from a control output terminal and a second signal from a feedback output terminal when the calculating assembly receives the triggered signal. An output assembly is electrically connected to the control output terminal of the calculating assembly for receiving the first signal, wherein the output assembly is adapted to change a power-on/off state of a controlled device when a voltage level of the first signal changes. A feedback assembly is electrically connected to the feedback output terminal of the calculating assembly for receiving the second signal, wherein the feedback assembly is adapted to output a feedback signal to the first actuator according to the second signal.

According to one or more embodiments of this disclosure, a power control method comprises: generating a trigger signal by an input assembly according to a state of a switch or a control signal inputted from a first actuator; outputting a first signal from a control output terminal and outputting a second signal from a feedback output terminal by a calculating assembly when the calculating assembly receives the trigger signal; changing a power-on/off state of a controlled device by an output assembly when a voltage level of the first signal is changed; and outputting a feedback signal to the first actuator by a feedback assembly according to the second signal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only and thus are not limitative of the present disclosure and wherein:

FIG. 1A is a block structure diagram of an embodiment of the power control device in this disclosure.

FIG. 1B is a block structure diagram of another embodiment of the power control device in this disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of the input assembly of the power control device in an embodiment of this disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of the output assembly of the power control device in an embodiment of this disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram of the feedback assembly of the power control device in an embodiment of this disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a circuit diagram of another embodiment of the power control device in this disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the power control method in an embodiment of this disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosed embodiments. It will be apparent, however, that one or more embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are schematically shown in order to simplify the drawings.

Please refer to FIG. 1A. FIG. 1A is a block structure diagram of an embodiment of the power control device in this disclosure. The power control device comprises: an input assembly 11, a calculating assembly 12, an output assembly 13 and a feedback assembly 14.

The input assembly 11 is adapted to be electrically connected to a first actuator A1, and the input assembly 11 has a switch 110. The input assembly 11 generates a trigger signal TS according to a state of the switch 110 or a control signal CS inputted from the first actuator A1. More specifically, the input assembly 11 is adapted to turn on an assembly of the power control device, wherein one method for turning on the assembly is able to be performed by the switch 110 and another method for turning on the assembly is able to be performed by the first actuator A1. More specifically, the user can turn on or turn off the electric power of the power control device shown in FIG. 1A by switching on or switching off the switch 110. Alternatively, the user can operate the first actuator A1 to send the control signal CS to the input assembly 11 for controlling a power-on/off state of the power control device. In this embodiment, the first actuator A1 may be implemented by a switch (SAS-Switch), and the trigger signal TS may be changed from a high voltage level (high) to a low voltage level (low) as a falling edge of a voltage signal. However, the first actuator A1 and the trigger signal TS may be implemented in other forms according to different structures of the servers, this disclosure is not limited thereto.

As FIG. 1A shows, the input terminal 121 of the calculating assembly 12 is electrically connected to the input assembly 11 in order to receive the trigger signal TS. Furthermore, when the calculating assembly 12 receives the trigger signal TS, the calculating assembly 12 can output a first signal FS from the control output terminal 122 and a second signal SS from the feedback output terminal 123 so that the output assembly 13 and the feedback assembly 14 are able to operate after receiving the first signal FS and the second signal SS. Particularly, the control output terminal 122 is electrically connected to the output assembly 13, and the feedback output terminal 123 is electrically connected to the feedback assembly 14. In this embodiment, the calculating assembly 12 may be an integrated circuit (IC). However, according to the factors such as different clock rates, sizes or cost of the calculating assembly 12, the calculating assembly 12 may be configured to be an element having calculating function, such as a microprocessor or a central processing unit (CPU). This disclosure is not limited thereto.

The output assembly 13 is electrically connected to the control output terminal 122 of the calculating assembly 12 in order to receive the first signal FS. Furthermore, when the voltage level of the first signal FS received by the output assembly 13 is changed, the power-on/off state of a controlled device Dc can be changed. For example, when the voltage level of the first signal FS is changed from a high voltage level to a low voltage level, the controlled device Dc is changed from power-on state to power-off state, and vice versa. In this embodiment, the controlled device Dc may be implemented by a light, such as a light-emitting diode (LED). However, the controlled device Dc also may be implemented by other kinds of light or electrical elements, this disclosure is not limited thereto.

The feedback assembly 14 is electrically connected to the feedback output terminal 123 of the calculating assembly 12 in order to receive the second signal SS. Furthermore, when the feedback assembly 14 receives the second signal SS, the feedback assembly 14 is able to output the feedback signal FBS to the first actuator A1. For these reasons, the user is able to confirm whether the input assembly 11, the calculating assembly 12 and the feedback assembly 13 operate normally according to whether the first actuator A1 receives the feedback signal FBS.

Please refer to FIG. 1B. FIG. 1B is a block structure diagram of another embodiment of the power control device in this disclosure. The difference between FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B is that the power control device shown in FIG. 1B is not only electrically connected to the aforementioned first actuator A1, but also electrically connected to a second actuator A2. More specifically, the second actuator A2 is also able to generate and send the control signal CS to the input assembly 11, and the second actuator A2 is also able to receive the feedback signal FBS sent by the calculating assembly 12. As a result, the operation of the second actuator A2 is similar to the operation of the first actuator A1 for the power control device. In this embodiment, the second actuator A2 may be a chip electrically connected to a rack management controller (RMC). However, the second actuator A2 may be implemented by other elements according to different structures of the servers, and this disclosure is not limited thereto.

Please refer to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of the input assembly of the power control device in an embodiment of this disclosure. The input assembly 11 not only has the aforementioned switch 110, but the input assembly 11 also comprises a first input transistor 111, a second input transistor 112 and a power input port P1. Particularly, the first input transistor 111 is electrically connected to the first actuator A1, the second input transistor 112 is electrically connected to the second actuator A2. Moreover, the power input port P1 is electrically connected to the aforementioned switch 110, and the power input port P1 is adapted to receive DC power.

Please continue to refer to FIG. 2 for illustrating the switch 110. The switch 110 has a based terminal 110 a, a first trigger terminal 110 b and a second trigger terminal 110 c. Furthermore, the first trigger terminal 110 b is a ground terminal, the second trigger terminal 110 c is electrically connected to the power input port P1 in order to receive an external DC power. Moreover, the based terminal 110 a is electrically connected to the power input port P1, and the based terminal 110 a is electrically connected to the first trigger terminal 110 b or the second trigger terminal 110 c, so that the switch 110 is able to be in a first state and a second state. More specifically, when the based terminal 110 a is electrically connected to the second trigger terminal 110 c, the power input port P1 supplies the external voltage continuously to the input terminal 121 of the calculating assembly 12, and thereby the input assembly 11 supplies a high voltage level (high) to the calculating assembly 12. As a result, when the based terminal 110 a is electrically connected to the second trigger terminal 110 c, the switch 110 is in a power-off state (the second state), and the input assembly 11 does not generate the trigger signal TS. On the other hand, when the based terminal 110 a is electrically connected to the first trigger terminal 110 b, a level of a voltage sent from the input assembly 11 to the calculating assembly 12 changes from high to low. Hence, when the based terminal 110 a is electrically connected to the first trigger terminal 110 b, the switch 110 is in a power-on state (the first state), and the input assembly 11 transforms the external voltage supplied by the power input port P1 to the trigger signal TS (the voltage level changes from high to low), and the input assembly 11 sends the trigger signal TS to the calculating assembly 12.

Please continue to refer to FIG. 2 for illustrating the first input transistor 111. The first input transistor 111 is electrically connected between the calculating assembly 12 and the first actuator A1, and the first input transistor 111 has a control terminal 111 a, a first terminal 111 b and a second terminal 111 c. Particularly, the control terminal 111 a is adapted to be electrically connected to the first actuator A1 in order to receive the control signal CS, the first terminal 111 b is electrically connected to the calculating assembly 12 in order to send the trigger signal TS to the calculating assembly 12, and the second terminal 111 c is a ground terminal. Moreover, the first input transistor 111 may be implemented by a metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) or a bipolar junction transistor (BJT). For example, when the first input transistor 111 is configured to be a MOSFET, the aforementioned control terminal 111 a may be a gate, the first terminal 111 b may be a drain, and the second terminal 111 c may be a source. On the other hand, when the first input transistor 111 is configured to be a BJT, the aforementioned control terminal 111 a may be a base, the first terminal 111 b may be a collector, and the second terminal 111 c may be an emitter.

Please continue to refer to FIG. 2. In another implementation in this embodiment, the input assembly 11 further comprises the second input transistor 112. The main difference between the second input transistor 112 and the aforementioned first input transistor 111 is that the second input transistor 112 is electrically connected between the calculating assembly 12 and the second actuator A2. Specifically, a control terminal 112 a of the second input transistor 112 is adapted to be electrically connected to the second actuator A2, a first terminal 112 b of the second input transistor 112 is electrically connected to the calculating assembly 12, and a second terminal 112 c of the second input transistor 112 is a ground terminal. Moreover, when the second input transistor 112 is configured to be a MOSFET or a BJT, the terminal of the MOSFET or the BJT corresponding to the control terminal 112 a, first terminal 112 b and second terminal 112 c are the same as those of the first input transistor 111. Hence, the descriptions are omitted herein.

Please refer to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of the output assembly of the power control device in an embodiment of this disclosure. As FIG. 3 shows, the output assembly 13 further comprises a first output transistor 131, and the first output transistor 131 is electrically connected between the calculating assembly 12 and the controlled device Dc. Similarly to the second input transistor 112, the first output transistor 131 also has a control terminal 131 a, a first terminal 131 b and a second terminal 131 c. Also, the first output transistor 131 may be implemented by a MOSFET or a BJT. Particularly, the control terminal 131 a is electrically connected to the calculating assembly 12 in order to receive the first signal FS, and the first terminal 131 b is electrically connected to the controlled device Dc and a power source P2 in order to change the power-on/off state of the controlled device Dc. Moreover, the second terminal 131 c is a ground terminal. Specifically, when the first signal FS received by the control terminal 131 a of the first output transistor 131 is a low voltage level, the first output transistor 131 is in a power-off state. In other words, the controlled device Dc is in a power-off state. Conversely, when the first signal FS received by the control terminal 131 a of the first output transistor 131 is a high voltage level, there is a short circuit between the first terminal 131 b of the first output transistor 131 and the second terminal 131 c of the first output transistor 131. Hence, the power supplied by the power source P2 forms a current to flow through the controlled device Dc. Meanwhile, the controlled device Dc is in a power on state. Furthermore, the first signal FS may be a variance of the voltage level of the control output terminal 122 of the calculating assembly 12. For example, the first signal FS may be a rising edge of the voltage signal which is changed from the predetermined low voltage level (low) to the high voltage level (high), but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

Please refer to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram of the feedback assembly of the power control device in an embodiment of this disclosure. As FIG. 4 shows, the feedback assembly 14 further comprises a first feedback transistor 141, and the first feedback transistor 141 is electrically connected between the calculating assembly 12 and the first actuator A1. The first feedback transistor 141 is similar to the first input transistor 111, the second input transistor 112 and the first output transistor 131, the first feedback transistor 141 has a control terminal 141 a, a first terminal 141 b and a second terminal 141 c. Also, the first feedback transistor 141 may be implemented by a MOSFET or a BJT. Specifically, the control terminal 141 a is electrically connected to the feedback output terminal 123 of the calculating assembly 12 in order to receive the second signal SS. The first terminal 141 b is electrically connected to the first actuator A1 and a power input port P3, and the first terminal 141 b sends the feedback signal FBS to the first actuator A1. Furthermore, the second terminal 141 c is a ground terminal. Specifically, when the second signal SS received by the feedback assembly 14 is a low voltage level, the first feedback transistor 141 is in a power-off state, and the feedback signal FBS generated by the feedback assembly 14 is a high voltage level. Conversely, when the second signal SS received by the feedback assembly 14 is a high voltage level, there is a short circuit between the first terminal 141 b of the first feedback transistor 141 and second terminal 141 c of the first feedback transistor 141, and the voltage supplied from the power input port P3 is changed from the high voltage level (high) to the low voltage level (low). Hence, the feedback signal FBS generated by the feedback assembly 14 is a low voltage level. It is worth mentioning that, the second signal SS may be a variance of the voltage of the feedback output terminal 123 of the calculating assembly 12. For example, the second signal SS may be changed from the predetermined high voltage level (high) to the low voltage level (low), but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

Please continue to refer to FIG. 4. Hereinbefore, in another implementation in this embodiment, the feedback assembly 14 further comprises a second feedback transistor 142, wherein the second feedback transistor 142 is electrically connected between the calculating assembly 12 and the second actuator A2. The main difference between the second feedback transistor 142 and the first feedback transistor 141 is that, a first terminal 142 b of the second feedback transistor 142 is electrically connected to the second actuator A2 and a power input port P4. Moreover, similarly to the first feedback transistor 141, the second feedback transistor 142 is able to generate and send the feedback signal FBS to the second actuator A2 according to the second signal SS. Since the process of generating the feedback signal FBS of the second feedback transistor 142 is the same as that of the first feedback transistor 141, the descriptions are omitted herein.

Please refer to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 is a circuit diagram of another implementation of the power control device in an embodiment of this disclosure. In this implementation, the first input transistor 111, the second input transistor 112, the first output transistor 131, the first feedback transistor 141 and the second feedback transistor 142 are respectively configured to be MOSFETs. On the other hand, the first input transistor 111 and the first feedback transistor 141 are connected to the first actuator A1, and the second input transistor 112 and the second feedback transistor 142 are connected to the second actuator A2. It should be noticed that, the circuit diagram shown in FIG. 5 is an implementation in this embodiment, and FIG. 5 is drawn for showing and illustrating the detailed features of this disclosure more clearly. For these reasons, this disclosure is not limited by the configuration shown in FIG. 5. Moreover, the features and concepts are based on the structure shown in FIG. 1A, so the second actuator A2, the second input transistor 112 and the second feedback transistor 142 are not the necessary elements, and said unnecessary elements may be configured in different combinations in practice. This disclosure is not limited thereto.

Please refer to FIG. 6. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the power control method in an embodiment of this disclosure. Please refer to the step S1: generating the trigger signal by the input assembly according to a state of the switch or the control signal inputted from a first actuator; wherein the state of the switch includes a first state (the trigger signal generated and the controlled device powered on) and the second state (the trigger signal not generated and the controlled device powered off), the control signal may be generated by the first actuator or by an operation from the user. Please refer to the step S2: outputting the first signal from the control output terminal and the second signal from the feedback output terminal by the calculating assembly; wherein the control output terminal is electrically connected to the output assembly and the feedback output terminal is electrically connected to the feedback assembly. When the calculating assembly outputs the first signal from the control output terminal and the voltage level of the first signal is changed, please refer to the step S3: changing the power-on/off state of the controlled device by the output assembly; wherein the output assembly is able to change the power-on/off state of the controlled device by the first output transistor. On the other hand, when the calculating assembly outputs the second signal from the feedback output terminal, please refer to the step S4: outputting the feedback signal to the first actuator by the output assembly according to the second signal. Specifically, in the step S4, the output assembly receives the second signal via the first feedback transistor, and the output assembly outputs the feedback signal as a high voltage level (high) or a low voltage level (low) to the first actuator according to the voltage level of the second signal. Moreover, in some implementations, the second signal may be a voltage of the feedback output terminal of the calculating assembly which changes from predetermined high voltage level (high) to a low voltage level (low), and the first feedback transistor is able to transform the voltage level of the received signal from low voltage level (low) to the high voltage level (high). Furthermore, the first feedback transistor sends the signal with the high voltage level (high) as the feedback signal to the first actuator. Hence, the feedback signal may have the same waveform as the first signal.

As a result, this disclosure provides a power control device and a control method. Since the power control device and the method thereto are implemented in the hardware, the operation is more stable than software. Moreover, the power control device and the method thereof are able to provide feedback for confirming whether the device is powered on. Hence, the user can confirm whether the device is operating normally in a more efficiency way.

The embodiments depicted above and the appended drawings are exemplary and are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the scope of the present disclosure to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teachings. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A power control device, comprising: an input assembly having a switch, wherein the input assembly is adapted to be electrically connected to a first actuator, and the input assembly generates a trigger signal according to a state of the switch or a control signal inputted from the first actuator; a calculating assembly electrically connected to the input assembly for receiving the trigger signal, wherein the calculating assembly outputs a first signal from a control output terminal and a second signal from a feedback output terminal when the calculating assembly receives the trigger signal; an output assembly electrically connected to the control output terminal of the calculating assembly for receiving the first signal, wherein the output assembly is adapted to change a power-on/off state of a controlled device when a voltage level of the first signal changes; and a feedback assembly electrically connected to the feedback output terminal of the calculating assembly for receiving the second signal, wherein the feedback assembly is adapted to output a feedback signal to the first actuator according to the second signal.
 2. The power control device according to claim 1, wherein the feedback assembly comprises a first feedback transistor, and the first feedback transistor is electrically connected between the calculating assembly and the first actuator, the first feedback transistor has a control terminal, a first terminal and a second terminal, the control terminal is electrically connected to the feedback output terminal of the calculating assembly in order to receive the second signal, the first terminal is adapted to be electrically connected to the first actuator in order to send the feedback signal to the first actuator, the first terminal is electrically connected to a first power input port, and the second terminal is a ground terminal.
 3. The power control device according to claim 2, wherein the feedback assembly further comprises a second feedback transistor, the second feedback transistor is electrically connected between the calculating assembly and a second actuator, a control terminal of the second feedback transistor is electrically connected to the feedback output terminal of the calculating assembly, a first terminal of the second feedback transistor is adapted to be electrically connected to the second actuator and a second power input port, and a second terminal of the second feedback transistor is a ground terminal.
 4. The power control device according to claim 1, wherein the switch of the input assembly is electrically connected to a third power input port in order to receive an external voltage, and the switch has a first state and a second state; the input assembly transforms the external voltage to the trigger signal and the input assembly sends the trigger signal to the calculating assembly when the switch is in the first state, and the input assembly does not generate the trigger signal when the switch is in the second state.
 5. The power control device according to claim 4, wherein the switch of the input assembly further comprises a based terminal, a first trigger terminal and a second trigger terminal, the first trigger terminal is a ground terminal, the second trigger terminal is electrically connected to the third power input port, and the based terminal is electrically connected to one of the first trigger terminal and the second trigger terminal; the switch is in the first state when the based terminal is electrically connected to the first trigger terminal, and the switch is in the second state when the based terminal is electrically connected to the second trigger terminal.
 6. The power control device according to claim 1, wherein the input assembly further comprises a first input transistor electrically connected between the calculating assembly and the first actuator, the first input transistor has a control terminal, a first terminal and a second terminal, the control terminal is adapted to be electrically connected to the first actuator in order to receive the control signal, the first terminal is electrically connected to the calculating assembly in order to send the trigger signal to the calculating assembly, and the second terminal is a ground terminal.
 7. The power control device according to claim 6, wherein the input assembly further comprises a second input transistor electrically connected between the calculating assembly and a second actuator, a control terminal of the second input transistor is adapted to be electrically connected to the second actuator, a first terminal of the second input transistor is electrically connected to the calculating assembly, and a second terminal of the second input transistor is a ground terminal.
 8. The power control device according to claim 1, wherein the output assembly comprises a first output transistor adapted to be electrically connected between the calculating assembly and the controlled device, wherein the first output transistor has a control terminal, a first terminal and a second terminal, wherein the control terminal is adapted to be electrically connected to the calculating assembly in order to receive the first signal, the first terminal is adapted to be electrically connected to the controlled device in order to change the power-on/off state of the controlled device, the first terminal is electrically connected to a power source, and the second terminal is a ground terminal.
 9. A power control method, comprising: generating a trigger signal, by an input assembly, according to a state of a switch or a control signal inputted from a first actuator; outputting a first signal from a control output terminal and outputting a second signal from a feedback output terminal, by a calculating assembly, when the calculating assembly receives the trigger signal; changing a power-on/off state of a controlled device by an output assembly when a voltage level of the first signal is changed; and outputting a feedback signal to the first actuator by a feedback assembly according to the second signal.
 10. The power control method according to claim 9, wherein outputting the feedback signal to the first actuator by the feedback assembly according to the second signal comprises: transforming the second signal to the feedback signal by a first feedback transistor; wherein a waveform of the feedback signal is the same as a waveform of the first signal. 